Health and Safety

Your personal safety should not be at risk, nor should your health be while traveling in Ecuador. You should, however, try to blend in with the crowd to avoid unwanted attention. Never admit that you are traveling alone and if you feel at all uncomfortable in a region you should leave it as promptly and directly as possible. Avoid poorly lit alleys and passageways at night, stick to well lit places.

A few public toilets are prone to flooding if you try to flush toilet paper. Most restrooms have wastebaskets nearby in which to dispose of used tissue. In most areas, wastebaskets have covers and are cleaned every day. Always carry a small roll of toilet paper with you as it may not be provided. Drinking tap water is not advisable anywhere in Ecuador, so drink only bottled or boiled water or soft drinks. If you are unable to find bottled drinks or to boil water, you can make water safer by both using a water-purifier that removes both bacteria and viruses and adding iodine tablets to the filtered water. Take care of your health and enjoy your holiday in the beautiful country of Ecuador.

This reply may have arrived a little be late but for future readers, just to let you know that yes, running water is proper to take a shower or a bath. In some areas in the Highlands is even drinkable from the tap, since the water from the mountains springs is very pure. However in hotter areas like the Coast and the Amazon, it is advisable to boil or filter the water first before drinking it since, even though it passes through a potabilization process, some microorganisms may remain. Almost everybody in urban areas has a filter device installed in their kitchens or buy bottled water, which is very cheap and reliable. Hope this helps you!